Movies Pick: Fly Boys

The three teen-age boys at the heart of “Chronicle” (coming to DVD May 15th) make a pair of amazing discoveries. First, after visiting a strange underground hideout, they find themselves endowed with telekinetic powers that enable them to push shopping carts and automobiles around with the force of their minds. Then they turn their newfound gifts on themselves and learn to levitate—and, ultimately, to fly. The science-fiction drama, directed by Josh Trank, who co-wrote the story, captures both the exhilaration and the hubris of magical powers and sees both sides as exemplary elements of the adolescent psyche. One of the teens, Andrew (played by Dane DeHaan) videotapes the trio’s adventures, and the faux-home-movie setup has rarely been put to such giddy use. Richard Brody wrote that “when they fly, the camera flies with them, swirling around in the air, capturing the trio in fluid and exhilarating whirligigs, and turning Andrew into the Max Ophüls of the self-documenting adolescent set.”

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